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I've said it before and I'll say it again: for many people the holiday season is an exciting time of year. It provides an opportunity to reconnect with friends and family. To celebrate. To give to those who matter most to us, and to be generous to those who struggle. And yet, the holiday season can also leave us vulnerable to burnout;

The holidays can bring stressors that we don’t normally experience during the rest of the year: the pressure to spend time with family members who may be challenging for us, to navigate the logistics of traveling, or to come up with excess money to spend on holiday parties, gifts, or elaborate meals (to name a few).

When I went through yoga-teacher training, way back before I became a psychotherapist, I remember one of the very first things my teacher told us as a class: “There are only two things in life that are certain – death and change.”

There are so many ways to bring Mindfulness into our lives. During the summertime, when many people find it easier to get outdoors, practicing Mindfulness in nature can be a great way to combine active Mindfulness strategies with taking in the benefits of being in nature.

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Mindfulness is defined as “the practice of maintaining a nonjudgmental state of heightened or complete awareness of one’s thoughts, emotions, or experiences on a moment-to-moment basis.”

As a holistic practitioner, I feel that it’s my responsibility to be open to various forms of treatment and acknowledge the many different ways in which we can cope with distress. For some of us, this may mean going to therapy, exercising regularly, or testing out “alternative” methods like acupuncture, Reiki, or massage. Here in Rhode Island, where the state approves the use of medical marijuana, that may also mean visiting Compassion Centers to utilize this substance.

As a holistic health practitioner, I am always looking for practices that improve mental health and well-being. I believe that before anyone can recommend anything, however, one must try it firsthand. This allows us as providers to share concrete and authentic feedback about experiences and expectations.